Prey Review – If It Bleeds We Can Kill It

Here’s my Prey review which stars Dan Trachtenberg and stars Amber Midthunder as Naru, Dakota Beavers as Taabe and more. The film was written by Patrick Aison with story by Dan Trachtenberg and Jim Thomas.

The film follows a young Comanche woman Naru (Amber Midthunder) who goes on to fight a Predator hunting in their area which also endangers the lives of her tribe.

The visuals for this movie is awesome. It’s definitely enjoyable especially as they re-use the classic formula from the original Predator movie (starring Arnold Schwarzenegger) while giving it some modern twist. The classic blood and gore is back too which I bloody welcome.

Its not the only thing that returns too as there are a number of easter eggs and references in this film that Predator fanboys and fangirls can easily recognize especially a very heavy reference to the oft overlooked Predator 2 which starred Danny Glover. And that little easter egg is something that’s proving to be a big deal for both new and old fans.

I loved the character of Naru as she’s very perceptive and observant and really spunky. It’s been awhile since we saw a female lead be that way and one of those was Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s character from 10 Cloverfield Lane. Plus she’s really pretty; there’s actually something alluring about her both visually and naratively.

Prey also gives us a peek into the world that Native Americans lived on during their time. You can say that Prey’s subtle story here is how the Native Americans are preyed upon by the voyageurs, the white man which reflects how the Feral Predator treats humans in general.

If there’s anything that gives Prey some bit of hobbling for me, it has to be the reliance on too much nostalgia. Like Predator 2 didn’t do the whole mud pit thing to make it such an interesting movie but they relied on that here in “Prey”. I was hoping that they did everything with a fresh take but we can only dream.

Also do we really need to see the Yautja patching itself up in every movie? That’s so 90s to be honest.

If It Bleeds We Can Kill It

The third act is what makes Prey truly interesting and engaging. It’s such a great mismatch to have a Native American versus a high tech alien Yautja but its entertaining. It kind of serves like a big session with Naru applying everything she’s learned throughout the film to make sure that the Yautja aka Feral Predator gets taken down.

Throughout the film we’re also getting some really great fight scenes and choreography with the camera shaking a little bit while not giving us viewers headaches. But it does get in your face from time to time, that I like.

Even the fight scenes between the tribesmen and Naru or that scene where Naru takes down an entire camp by herself and by surprise. Pretty good if you ask me.

Ugly Sonuvabitch

I also have to write about the design for the Feral Predator. Its design is so different from the past movie versions while sticking to the motif. It’s very tribal and Native American-y in design too with the loincloth and all that. It’s kind of scary come to think of it that this isn’t the normal Predator we’re used to seeing with some form of armor here and there. This one’s just in the buff except for his rather primitive weaponry.

Verdict

10/10

Prey has a lot of fresh things going on and its also one that takes the Predator franchise to the next level. Taking a deep cut from the lore proves to be exciting and promising. It also whets our appetite for future installments set at different times in human history. The action is intense and tight and the premise is definitely good.

In fact, there’s already clamor to see a Predator movie set in feudal Japan starring Hiroyuki Sanada and I’m down for that.

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